KITS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY TO DEVELOP EMOTIONAL REGULATION
What is Emotional Regulation?
Emotional regulation is one of the skills a person uses to solve problems. The other skills are adaptability, flexibility and frustration tolerance, and together, these abilities enable a person to respond to challenging situations more independently and adaptively. Another essential component is interoception, the ability to recognise and make sense of the inner bodily sensations, since this informs our emotion awareness. Emotional regulation, also commonly known as self regulation, is an ability which develops across childhood and is only really established in early adulthood. Throughout this period of development, it is why co-regulation is so essential in helping a child regulate, validating their inner experience and building the bridge and their capacity to self regulate in the future.
Why is Emotional Regulation important?
Everyone has their own interoceptive and emotional experience which is correct and valid. Unfortunately, many children have been taught to ignore their body’s sensations to comply with expected behaviours or social norms, leading to masking, poor mental health and dysregulation. Commonly there are approaches telling children their problem isn’t as big as it feels, which is what creates confusing messages and masking experiences. Developing individualised interoceptive and emotional awareness can take time, particularly while a child learns to trust their body’s sensations and learn from experiences and challenges that arise, but through compassion, understanding, and regulated adult relationships, this is the pathway necessary to developing emotional regulation.
How Let’s OT kits improve emotional regulation?
Direct instruction has been found to be less effective than proactive and collaborative problem solving approaches when developing emotional regulation skills. This is why Let’s OT’s ‘Emotional Inventory Kit’ is designed to be completed collaboratively with caregivers. The process of proactively exploring challenges and collaboratively identifying solutions is essential in the development of emotional regulation, which is explored in our workbook in this kit.
Often, we are taught about emotions using emotion words only (direct instruction), without first identifying bodily sensations and then connecting those to emotion words or individualised experiences. It is also important to note that sensation and emotion words are not always instinctive for everyone, and that there are other ways to communicate sensations and emotions, such as through colours, emojis, shapes, animals or other experiences.
The Emotional Inventory has been designed to help your child discover and understand their bodily sensations (interoception) so they can determine and connect which emotion words make sense for them, helping them advocate their needs effectively and clearly.
Playfully, The Emotional Inventory also introduces children and caregivers to different tools to assist in regulating, including breathing and breath control and expressing bigger, stronger emotions such as anger and frustration in a safe way.
CAN I USE MY NDIS FUNDING?
Yes! NDIS funding is accepted! Depending on your NDIS Plan and Goals, you can use either your Capacity Building: Improved Daily Living Budget or Core Budget.
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